Divide and Re-formOhad Naharin redefines spectacleby DEBORAH JOWITT for the Village Voice

We, the spectator platoon, interact with the dancers as a unit and at a distance. At one point, Rachel Osborne's calm, taped voice urges us to copy gestures she mutely executes in a close-up projected video along with the onstage dancers, becoming more and more energetic. Toward the end of the piece, the 20 company members sit facing us on chairs, and, again guided by Osborne, we're invited to touch parts of our bodies while pondering certain questions, like "Touch your chin and think that you're enjoying yourself."

A renowned choreographer and the artistic director of Batsheva Dance Company, based in Tel Aviv, Ohad Naharin masters abstract elements—colors, patterns, and moving figures. In the New York premiere of his “Telophaza,” July 20 at the New York State Theater as part of the Lincoln Center Festival, pure dance is imbued with humor, feelings of love, pride, and togetherness. Its structure is defined by large groups moving in unison—including the near-capacity (2,713) audience.

Batsheva’s “Third” a Stormy Experience on a Cloudless NightBatsheve Dance Company
Presented by San Francisco Performances
Performed at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Thursday, October 26, 2006, 8PM

Batsheva Dance Company, one of Israel’s premier modern dance companies (and originally founded in part by Martha Graham in the late 60s), returned to San Francisco after a 2-year hiatus, and as its last visit had been hyped to oblivion, I was psyched to see the company. Not quite high school cheerleader “P-S-Y-C-H-E-D” psyched, but still, I felt as though I was walking on clouds prior to the performance. Unfortunately, by the end of the night, these clouds had turned into patches of light fog and drizzle, yet in metaphor only. Outside the weather was warm and the sky star-filled.

The evening’s program consisted of Artistic Director Ohad Naharin’s 70-minute “Three,” which explores the three themes of beauty, nature, and existence. Technically, the company’s dancers performed admirably, with long, lean limbs, beautiful extensions, and an adept ability to grasp quick gestures with gritty realness. But while there were moments of choreographic genius, such as the 1st solo, which incorporated spot-on timing with insightful and at times gripping movement, and for that much, the entire first movement, which combined everyday pedestrian-ness with artistic flair, much of the rest of the work looked to still be in the editing stages. However, as this work premiered early last year in Tel Aviv, I knew this not to be true, and I left feeling like someone had punched my brain in the stomach. Is this even possible?

The entire second section consisted of the company’s women dancing in unison. For the entire 18 (approx.) minutes. At a very, very dulling pace. Accompanied by the music of Brian Eno. Luckily, the dancing of Daniel Agami, Ia’ara Moses, Adi Zlatin and Gili Navot kept me awake and someone interested, but I felt transported back to grade school, where everyone danced together while following the pacing of the front dancer, and my mom would be sitting somewhere in front ready to pick out which unitard-clad dancer (the one with the curls and massively thick glasses!) was hers. Sigh, the good old days.

The third section definitely was an improvement on the second, but again, it felt static and unfinished while focusing on some amateurish moments, such as black-outs with no real purpose during a potentially promising duet. Later, when the dancers mooned the audience and provided flashes of frontal nudity (hello, pubic hair!), all I could think of was “Huh?”

On the technical side, the lighting by Avi Yona Bueno was bright and airy, complementing the white dance floor and grey block-like set frame while providing an additional “realness” to the dancers’ every movement. Bueno created lovely shadows while playing up the stark contrast between the dancers and their large space. Costumes by Rakefet Levy, though, left something to be desired. The J. Crew, tank top, polo shirt, Capri, cargo short look is fine, but not if the dancers look like they just grabbed whatever was lying on the floor that day (really, a hot pink short-sleeved turtleneck, several different muted-color tank tops, and an orange polo shirt a costume design does not make).

“Three” will most likely not get the editing or make-over it needs to transform from a body of ideas to a statement of art, but hopefully when the company next returns, it’ll provide a little more thunder and lightening to accompany the R-E-S-P-E-C-T it likely deserves.

Batsheva dancers are fluid, frisky and, against all odds, humanJanice Berman, Special to The Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
Saturday, October 28, 2006

Quote:

You know how it is. You're driving home from a dance concert, listening to rock on the radio, and your body starts bopping to the beat. Shoulders lift, arms flail, neck stretches, foot taps. It's a waker-upper, a refresher and, best of all, a self-expresser.

Or at least, that's how it used to be. After seeing Batsheva Dance Company's show, "Three," at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, your correspondent and once intrepid car-dancer felt utterly inadequate, physically inarticulate. Choreographer and artistic director Ohad Naharin's Israel-based crew were Fred and Ginger, Fred and Fred, Martha Graham acolytes (like Naharin himself), acrobats of God. They shrugged shoulders, retracted legs, flailed arms, stretched necks. They shimmied, did tangos and splits, made odd noises deep in their throats, poked their faces with their fingers, navigated the stage on their butts, quivered hands and extended tongues. Oh yeah, and dropped trou. A few did, anyway.

Holy moly! I just saw them perform Three at UCLA, and will write more later, but go see them! They have a very unique, energetic attack and way of moving that's very eclectic in its influences, and the company moves with such a unified style.

Very seldom do I have to apologize to friends who I invite to a performance -- Batsheva's "Three" was one such evening... I encouraged and cajoled. Like MEH and other dance fiends, I proclaimed, "If you can only see one performance this fall, make it Batsheva." My heart I still believe was in the right place. Batsheva and Ohad Naharin however failed to deliver. There was too much here that seemed disjointed and unfinished, smacking of a desperation to innovate.

One saving grace is the quality of the dancers. However, they need better works to accompany their talent!

Ohad Naharin has a genius for composition. "Max" starts slow but purposefully in order to arc up, subtly, to a quiet rythmic crescendo. The beauty and clarity of the movements were achieved through ten impressive dancers. To say I was mesmerized might be an understatement.

Batsheva Dance Company is performing "Project 5," a compilation of works by Ohad Naharin, at the Joyce Theatre in New York through October 3, 2010. Robert Greskovic reviews the program in the Wall Street Journal.

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